Indigenous Education in Brazil: The Issue of Contacted and Noncontacted Native Indians

Guilherme, Alexandre

Diaspora, Indigenous, and Minority Education, v9 n4 p205-220 2015

The Universal Declaration of Human Rights states that "everyone has the right to education" and "elementary education shall be compulsory." In this article, I first discuss the current situation of Native Indian education in Brazil; this is to say, the education of the so-called contacted groups. I shall make clear that the educational provision for these groups faces many challenges, including that of deciding what kind of fundamental paradigm should underpin it. Second, I turn my attention to the case of noncontacted groups and ask the question: Does the basic human right of education as stated by the UN Universal Declaration of Human Rights, and mirrored by the Brazilian Constitution, apply to these groups? If we answer yes to this question, then could we say that the Brazilian state, and other states, are failing these groups? If we answer in the negative, then a sound argument for the fundamental human right to education not applying to them must be provided.